“Islamiyat 2058/02”

Notes

HAZRAT ABU BAKR (RA)

SIGNIFICANCE OF ABU BAKR DURING THE PROPHET’S
LIFETIME:
 Abu Bakr, whose real name was Abdullah, was one of the
Prophet’s closest friends.
 Even before accepting Islam, he led a pious and chaste life.
 After the Holy Prophet had received his first revelation he
thought of approaching those closest to him so he told Abu
Bakr the whole story of his experience.
 Abu Bakr responded to his call and immediately embraced
Islam.
 He was the first free adult male and the first person outside
the family of the Prophet to become a Muslim.
 The Qur’an describes his acceptance as: ‘’and he who
comes with the truth and he who confirms it.....such are the
people who do right’’ (39:33).
 He was the first person to testify to the Messenger’s event of
Miraj (Prophet’s ascension to the heavens) and was given the
title of ‘’Al Siddique’’ due to his immediate belief of the journey.
 After accepting Islam he devoted his life and wealth to
preaching Islam.
 Abu Bakr’s acceptance proved to be a milestone in the
prophet’s mission.
 Prominent companions like Usman, Talha and Zubair are
said to have been persuaded by him to accept Islam.
 He bought and freed a lot of slaves, Bilal being one of the
prominent ones.
 When the Holy Prophet started preaching openly he faced
fierce opposition.
 During all such hardships Abu Bakr stood by his side.
 The first public address of inviting people to offer allegiance
to the Prophet’s message was delivered by Abu Bakr.
 At this the youth of Quraish beat Abu Bakr till he fainted.
 In 620AD when the Prophet’s wife died, Abu Bakr’s daughter
Ayesha was engaged to the Prophet whom he married after his
migration to Medina.
 In 622AD on the invitation from the Muslims of Medina, the
Prophet ordered Muslims to migrate.
 The migration took place in batches and the Prophet was the
last one to leave accompanied by Abu Bakr.
 Both remained in the cave of Saur for three days to hide from
the Makkans who wanted to kill the Prophet and his
companion.
 This event is mentioned in the Qur’an: ‘’he being the second
of the two when they were in the cave’’ (9:40).
 At Medina Abu Bakr continued his services to Islam.
 He paid for the piece of land selected by the Holy Prophet
for the mosque of the Prophet (Masjid-e-Nabvi).
 He rendered valuable services in all the battles.
 In the battle of Badr, he was in charge of the right wing of
the troops and fought against his own son Abdur Rahman.
 In the battle of Uhad, he negated the rumour of the
Prophet’s death and acted as a shield to save him.
 In the battle of Hunaian, he remained firm and reorganised
the scattered troops that had started running away.
 When the Holy Prophet began to raise funds for the Tabuk
expedition, Abu Bakr placed all his wealth at the disposal of the
Holy Prophet.
 He was present at the time of the treaty of Hudaibiya and
was one of the signatories. He was also one of the ten blessed
companions who were given tidings of heaven during their
lifetime.
 He was appointed the first Ameer-e-Hajj (the chief guide of
pilgrimage). Abu Bakr led the daily prayers during the last days
of the Holy Prophet’s illness.
 Finally it was Abu Bakr who normalised the critical situation
arising out of the death of the Holy Prophet, as nobody was
ready to believe this including Umar.
 Abu Bakr on this occasion recited these verses: ‘’Mohammad
is no more than a messenger: many messengers that were
before him passed away, if he died or were slain will you then
turn back on your heels?’’ (3:144).
  Nobody led the funeral prayers of the Holy Prophet, Abu
Bakr and Umar were the first of worshippers.
 He was unanimously elected the first Caliph of Islam.
 Abu Bakr continued to perform meritorious services for Islam
even after the death of the Holy Prophet.

SHORT ACCOUNT OF ABU BAKR’S LIFE: (NOV 2004 PAPER 2)

PROBLEMS FACED BY ABU BAKR WITHIN ARABIA:

REFUSAL TO PAY ZAKAT:

 The issue of the refusal to pay Zakat was a great test of the
moral courage of Abu Bakr as the first Caliph of the Holy
Prophet.
 After the demise of the Holy Prophet many surrounding
tribes of Medina which had offered allegiance to Islam, sent a
deputation to Abu Bakr with the proposal that their agreement
with the Muslims had ended.
 A fresh agreement was necessary in which they should be
relieved from the obligation to pay Zakat. Abu Bakr argued that
Zakat was a fundamental injunction of Islam and had to be paid.
 Seeing their proposal being rejected these tribes decided to
forego Islam. Their decision was to attack Medina when the
main Muslim army was in Syria.
 They attacked at night but found Abu Bakr with his army
ready to fight.
 The apostates were defeated; many tribesmen died while
others fled in confusion.
 After this battle many tribes sent their delegates to Medina,
offered allegiance and paid Zakat.

APOSTASY MOVEMENT:
 After the Prophet’s death, some of the people rose in revolt
against the authorities in Medina and renounced Islam.
 Abu Bakr, without any delay, launched an expedition against
this movement.
  After collecting the troops at Medina, he divided them into
eleven battalions each with an experienced commander, and
sent them in eleven different directions to crush these revolts.
 He instructed each commander to first invite these tribes to
Islam. If any refused to comply they were to be attacked.
 Some of the tribes accepted Islam but the others were
stubborn and were dealt with harshly.
 All campaigns were successful and Abu Bakr was able to re-
establish control of Islam throughout the Peninsula.

FALSE PROPHETS:
 In the last days of the Prophet’s life some misguided people
arose to claim prophet hood.
 When Abu Bakr was elected as the Caliph they started their
preaching openly.
 Among these false prophets were Tulaiha, Aswad Ansi,
Musailamah and Sajjah. Tulaiha belonged to the Banu Asad
tribe in the northern Arabia.
 An army under Khalid bin Walid was sent which met them at
Buzaka.
 After a fierce battle Tulaiha’s army surrendered and he
himself fled to Syria. He embraced Islam during the time of the
second Caliph.
 Aswad Ansi belonged to the Ansi tribe in Yemen.
 He was an ugly man who kept his face veiled all the time.
 He was nicknamed ‘’the veiled prophet’’.
 Being leader of his tribe he revolted with the cooperation of
the neighbouring chiefs.
 He was the first false prophet who collected a large army in
open revolt against Islam.
 He was defeated and killed by the Muslims.
 The most dangerous of the false prophets was Musalima.
 He belonged to a tribe of central Arabia.
 His tribe accepted him as a prophet.
 Abu Bakr sent Shurbhil and Ikramah to crush the rebellion;
later Khalid bin Walid joined them. Musalimah,s army was
defeated after a fierce battle at Yamamah in 633AD.
Musalimah was killed.
  In this battle about 800 Muslims were martyred. Amongst
them were 360 Huffaz (memorizers of the Holy Qur’an).
 Sajjah was a woman who belonged to the Bani Tamim tribe.
 She claimed to be a prophetess and succeeded in mustering
a large following.
 When Musalimah heard about her claim he invited her to
Yamamah.
 They decided to join forces and later Musailma married her
which ended her adventure of prophet hood and she lived in
obscurity for the rest of her life.
 When the Muslims conquered Iraq she entered the circle of
Islam along with her tribe.

COMPILATION OF THE QUR’AN:

 In the battle of Yamamah several Huffaz laid down their lives.
 Hazrat Umar approached Hazrat Abu Bakr about the
compilation of the Holy Qur’ran.
 He was of the opinion that soon the preservation of the
Qur’an will become a major problem owing to the deaths of the
Huffaz.
 Abu Bakr did not agree in the beginning but was later
convinced by Umar and he ordered the compilation of the Holy
Book under the supervision of Zaid bin Sabit.

3) (a) Trace the major stages in the compilation of the Qur’an

in the time of the Rightly Guided Caliphs.
(b) Why did these Caliphs think it was important to make a
compilation of the Qur’an?
ANS 3(a):

 At the time of the Prophet’s death no official copy of the

Qur’an existed in a complete written form.
 During the caliphate of Abu Bakr some people declared
themselves to be prophets. Among them was Musalima. Abu
Bakr waged a war against him and around 360 companions
laid down their lives in that battle, known as the battle of
Yamamah.
 70 of them had committed the Holy Qur’an to memory.
 Hazrat Umar realized that these ‘’oral copies’’ of the Qur’an
would gradually diminish because of natural death or
martyrdom in future battles.
 He suggested to Abu Bakr that the Qur’an should be
compiled for the future generations or else it would meet the
same fate as the previous scriptures.
 Hazrat Abu Bakr, however, hesitated and said that how could
he do something that the Holy Prophet did not do.
 Hazrat Umar argued that under the circumstances this was
an absolute necessity. According to Hazrat Abu Bakr, ‘’Umar
went on persuading me to accept his suggestion till I was
convinced that he was right so I accepted his suggestion.’’
 Abu Bakr directed Zaid bin Sabit, one of the scribes of the
Qur’an, to collect the Quranic verses from every part of the
Islamic empire and compile them in a book form.
 A commission was appointed and headed by Zaid bin Sabit
and its members were a number of companions.
 Zaid collected the chapters of the Qur’an from every person
who had it in their possession. He collected it from palm leaves,
stones, and pieces of wood and people who had memorized it.
 He not only collected it, but also verified it from people who
had heard it from the Holy Prophet.
 Though he himself was a Hafiz of the Qur’an, he always tried
to find a verse in writing before including it in his manuscript.
 Zaid is reported to have said that he felt it would be far easier
to carry a mountain on his head than to shoulder such a great
responsibility.
 The script prepared by Zaid remained with the first Caliph
and after his death was transferred to Hazrat Umar, the second
Caliph.
 After Hazrat Umar’s death it was transferred to Hazrat Hafsa,
a widow of the Holy Prophet and Umar’s daughter.
 This copy of the Qur’an came to be known as Musaf al-Hafsa
i.e. Hafsa’s copy of the Holy Book.
 By the time of Usman’s Caliphate the Islamic state had
expanded well beyond Arabia.
 The new converts of these areas recited the Qur’an in their
own dialects.
  Disputes rose among these people and some of them
insisted that their style of recitation was correct and the others
were not.
 One of the companions of the Prophet approached the
Caliph and told him about the possible danger of the division of
the Ummah.
 Usman took immediate action and he declared that the
Muslims should unite on a uniform way of recitation.
 He got the copy of the Qur’an from Hazrat Hafsa and gave it
to a team of four companions which was headed by Zaid bin
Sabit.
 It was decided that one standard version of the Qur’an would
be written in the dialect of the tribe of the Quraish.
 The Holy prophet was from the Quraish, the Quran had been
revealed in that dialect, and it was felt that this was the right
dialect for the recitation of the Qur’an.
 This team made several copies from the original text and
made sure the surahs, too, were arranged in order.
 The Qur’an was read out loudly from the beginning to the
end in the Prophet’s mosque from these copies, so that not a
shadow of doubt remained in anyone’s mind that changes had
been introduced in the text.
 These copies were sent to the capital city of every province
of the Muslim states with a teacher to teach how to recite the
Qur’an properly and correctly.
 Instructions were also given that in the future, copies should
be made only from the official text and that if anyone had a
copy with a different text, it should be burnt.
 Hazrat Usman is known as the Jami-al-Quran which means
that he brought the Muslims around to a uniform reading of the
Quran.
 The Quran that is being read today is the same as in the time
of Abu Bakr.
 Nothing has been added or deleted from it and the
arrangement of the chapters and verses are in the same order
as proclaimed by the Holy Prophet, in accordance with Divine
instructions.

ANS 3(b): The two Caliphs performed remarkable services to

Islam by compiling the Holy Quran.

 Both were driven by different circumstances.

 Abu Bakr, being a staunch follower of the Prophet, was
reluctant to compile the Quran but on Umar’s insistence, was
convinced of doing so.
 He realized if the memorizers of the Quran were either killed
or died naturally with the passage of time, a situation of
confusion might arise throughout the Muslim world regarding
the exact number of verses and surahs of the Quran.
 If the future generations of the Muslims had no single copy of
the Quran, they might be misled as the Quran is the basis of all
thought and action for the Muslims.
 Usman, likewise, faced another challenging situation.
 Several newly converted Muslims in non-Arab territories
began to argue about the ways of recitation of the Quran.
 There was a danger of the growth of sects amongst Muslims
regarding the way of recitation because every group insisted
that their dialect was the correct one and the others were
wrong.
 This meant that various groups might oppose each other and
disunity amongst Muslims might threaten their fraternity.
 So Usman took a wise, timely action by compiling and
standardising the Holy Book and burning all the copies which
did not match the official and approved text.

SAVIOUR OF ISLAM:

 Abu Bakr is rightly called the saviour of Islam because of the

vital services rendered by him. Soon after the Prophet’s death,
he was the one to calm down the shocked Muslim community.
 Most of the companions including Umar were not ready to
believe in the Prophet’s death. Abu Bakr on this occasion,
delivered a convincing speech told all about the mortality of
Mohammad by reciting: ‘’Mohammad is no more than a
messenger: many messengers that were before him passed
away, if he died or were slain will you then turn back on your
heels?’’ (3:144).
  Later as a Caliph he suppressed the apostasy movement
and thus preserved the fundamentals of Islam.
 False prophets challenged the second component of
Shahada—‘’Mohammad is the final Messenger of God.’’ He
defeated the false prophets and thus kept the unity of Islam.
 He fought and won against the tribes refusing to pay Zakat.
By eradicating both, Abu Bakr defended the basic principles of
Islam.
 Finally by compiling the Qur’an, Abu Bakr ensured the unity
of the Muslim community that depended on the Qur’an.

ELECTION:
 Prophet did not nominate a successor.
 After his death there was an argument between the ansar
and mahajireen.
 Both wanted that the caliph should be from their group.
 A suggestion was given that there should be two caliphs, one
from each group.
 Abu Bakr reminded them that the prophet instructed that the
leader should be from the Quraish tribe.
 He suggested the names of Ubu Ubaidah bin Jarrah and
Umar bin Khataab.
 But Umar took Abu Bakr’s hand and pledged his loyalty to
him.
 On seeing this everyone did the same.
 He was unanimously elected the first Caliph.

WHY HE WAS CALLED AL-SIDDIQUE:

 First free male to accept Islam.
 Believed in the ‘’miraj’’ (Prophets ascension to the heavens)
ADMINISTRATION:
 Laid the foundation of a truly democratic state.
 Always took advice from the great companions of the
Prophet in all important matters.
 Divided the state into provinces, each had a governor.
 The governor was responsible for military and administrative
affairs.
  Governer had an ‘’amil’’ to collect taxes and ‘’qazi’’ to
administer justice.
 All commanders and governors were selected on merit.
 He offered himself and his officers for strict accountability.
 He built a ‘’bait-ul-maal’’ (treasury) to collect revenue.
 Established military cantonments and maintained a reserve
force.
 Expanded the Muslim Empire to Iran Syria and Rome.
 Ensured the safety of non-Muslim subjects and allowed
them to perform their religious duties.
 His annual income was 6000 Dirhams which he returned to
the state by issuing instructions to sell a piece of land he
owned when he was on his death bed.

LIST OF QUESTIONS

4 (a) Write an account of the major contributions made to

Islam by Abu Bakr:
(i) During the Prophet’s lifetime; [4]
• He was the Prophet’s friend from childhood.
• He was one of the first to accept Islam.
• He brought others to accept Islam.
• He remained loyal to the Prophet at all times, good and bad.
• He expressed belief in the Prophet’s Night Journey.
• He bought slaves who were Muslim and freed them.
• He accompanied the Prophet on the hijra.
• He gave his daughter `A’isha to be the Prophet’s wife.
• He made a financial contribution to the expedition to Tabuk.
(ii) During his caliphate. [8]
• He steadied the mourning community after the Prophet’s death.
• He continued the Prophet’s intention to send expeditions to the
north. [1 mark for the basic point, and 1 extra mark for details]
• He fought against the tribes who withheld zakat.
• He fought against the false prophets.
• These were Musaylima, Tulayha, Aswad al-Ansi and Sajjah. [1
mark, but 2 marks if all four names are given]
• He arranged to have the first collection of the Qur’an made. [1
mark, but 2 marks for details of how this happened]
(a) Describe four incidents that show how, between 622 and
661, the Prophet and the Rightly Guided Caliphs conducted
relations with other states. [4 x 3]
(b) Suggest ways in which any two of these examples can
provide models for relations between states today.

(a) Describe Abu Bakr's activities against the false prophets

and apostate tribes. [10]
Answers could have basic references to the false prophets, the
tribes withholding zakat and the apostate tribes. Some could go on
to give fuller accounts of these challenges, faced by Abu Bakr. In
the answers it could be described that at the time of Abu Bakr's
caliphate there were a number of people in Arabia who claimed to
be prophets like Muhammad. The main ones were Musaylima
among the Hanifa tribes in Yamama, Tulayha among the tribes of
Asad and Ghatafan, al-Aswad in the Yemen and Sajjah among the
Tamim tribe. Answers could give accounts of how Abu Bakr sent
forces against all of them and write about the fighting against
Musaylima in the battle of Yamama, which was the most fierce,
and one in which many memorizers of the Qur'an were killed. The
revolt against Islam by tribes that had pledged loyalty to the
Prophet and the refusal of some tribes to send taxes to Medina
could also be described. Excellent answers will give a full account.

(b) Why is Abu Bakr called the Saviour of Islam? [4]

To gain top marks in this question candidates need to show a good
understanding of the reason why he was called the Saviour of
Islam. A satisfactory answer would simply explain that he fought to
prevent the break-up of Islam. However, more complete answers
will explain that the false prophets and apostates threatened the
uniqueness and unity of Islam and could not be allowed to
continue their activities. Hence when he became caliph he not only
gave new heart to the Muslims after the Prophet passed away but
helped the community of Muslims against its many enemies. In his
short term as caliph he defeated the tribes who withdrew from
Islam and made them stay Muslim and he fought and won against
tribes who refused to pay zakat. He also defeated the false
prophets and thus kept the unity of Islam when there was much
danger. Candidates could mention his contribution in the
compilation of the Qur’an as well.

(b) Explain why he was known as the Honest One (al-Siddiq),

and the Saviour of Islam. [4]
• He was given the title of al-Siddiq after he declared without
hesitation that he believed the Prophet had been taken to
Jerusalem on the Night Journey.
• It also suits his conduct of showing complete loyalty towards
Muhammad.
• He was acknowledged as the Saviour of Islam because of his
efforts to keep the community united, to resist the threat from
tribes withdrawing from Islam, and to destroy the false prophets. [1
mark, but 2 marks for all of these points]
4 (a) Write about:
(i) Abu Bakr’s conquest of the false prophets
(ii) `Uthman’s arrangements to make a collection of the Qur’an.
[2x5]
(b) Explain why these two caliphs thought it was important to
take these actions. [2x3]
(a) (i)
• One of the problems facing Abu Bakr was a number of people in
Arabia who claimed to be prophets like Muhammad
• The main ones were Musaylima among the Hanifa tribes in
Yamama, Tulayha among the tribes of Asad and Ghatafan, al-
Aswad al-Ansi in the Yemen and Sajdah among the Tamim tribe [1
mark for all four names; 1 extra mark for details about
each]
• He sent forces against all of them
• The fighting against Musaylima was most fierce: in the battle of
Yamama many memorizers of the Qur’an were killed
(ii)
• `Uthman discovered that in parts of the empire people were
following different versions of the Qur’an
• He ordered all copies of the Qur’an to be destroyed
• He invited Zayd Ibn Thabit and a group of Muslims to compile an
authentic copy of the text
• They took great care, consulting widely and checking the text
against memories
• They referred to the collection in the keeping of Hafsa
• `Uthman had copies made and distributed these to the major
centres
(b) [In each case allow 1 mark for a basic explanatory comment
(not description); 1 extra mark for a further comment that shows
fuller understanding; and the third mark for complete explanations]
The false prophets threatened the uniqueness of the Prophet
Muhammad
Their claims suggested that Muhammad was not the last prophet
sent from God
Unless they were overthrown Islam could not uphold its claims.
If variant readings were allowed the message of the Qur’an might
be obscured
These readings threatened the purity of God’s instructions
If they were allowed to continue the community might be split over
different teachings

Conversion of Abu Bakr (Nov ’09 paper 1):

Abu Bakr: close friend of the prophet from childhood and amongst
the first to convert (first free adult male); he became Muslim
without hesitation; was open about calling others to the new faith
and persuaded many to accept Islam; he purchased slaves and
set them free; he was the first person to openly invite people to the
new faith and was beaten severely.

HAZRAT UMAR
MAIN ACTIVITIES DURING THE LIFETIME OF THE PROPHET:
 Umar belonged to the Banu Ádi clan of the Quraish.
 His father Al-Khatab was an influential leader of Makkah.
 Umar was tall, well built, a fierce fighter and well educated.
 He was elected the spokesperson of Quraish.
 He remained a bitter enemy of Islam and the Holy Prophet
before his conversion.
 He treated the early converts of low origin quite mercilessly
and according to a tradition the Holy Prophet had prayed to
God for the conversion of Umar bin Khattab or Amr bin Hisham
(Abu Jahal).
 The prayer was soon granted. Umar one day decided to kill
the Holy Prophet and with that intention started towards his
house with a sword.
 On the way, he was informed that his sister and her husband
had embraced Islam. Infuriated, Umar changed his course and
went to his sister’s house who was reading the Holy Qur’an
loudly.
 This enraged Umar so much that he attacked her and her
husband.
 On Umar’s insistence his sister recited some verses from
Surah Taha.
 The words of the Holy Qur’an softened his heart and tears
began to fall from his eyes and he immediately decided to
embrace Islam.
 He approached the Holy Prophet and embraced Islam.
 This was a great occasion as the morale of the Muslims
boosted so much that now they started offering prayers openly
in the Kaabah after Umar took the bold step of entering the
Kaabah with a small band of Muslims.
 The Holy Prophet was so pleased on hearing this that he
gave him the title of ‘’Farooq’’ (one who distinguishes between
truth and falsehood).
 He started preaching Islam openly and boldly.
 He is counted amongst the 10 blessed companions and is
also a scribe of the Divine revelation.
 His daughter Hafsa was married to the Holy Prophet.
 He also migrated to Medina shortly after Ammar and Bilal
had departed.
 It was Umar who gave the suggestion of summoning the
believers for Daily prayers by Adhaan(call for prayer).
 He also rendered remarkable services in all the battles
including Badr, Uhad, Trench, Khyber and Hunain.
 He was also present at the treaty of Hudaibiya and took part
in Bait-e-Rizwan.
 He participated in the victorious march to Makkah.
 In the Tabuk expedition he donated half of his wealth and in
the battle of Hunain, he was among those handfuls of Muslims
who stood firmly by the side of the Holy Prophet.
 Umar was not ready to believe in the death of the Holy
Prophet till Abu Bakr called him down by reciting the verse
(3:144).
 Soon after, he started making arrangements for the Holy
Prophet’s burial together with Abu Bakr.
 In the meantime they heard of an Ansar meeting to discuss
the issue of succession.
 Both reached the spot and finally, due to Umar’s wisdom and
timely intervention, Abu Bakr got elected as the first Caliph of
Islam.
  Umar himself performed extra ordinary services for Islam
during his Caliphate (634-644 AD).

EXPANSION OF THE ISLAMIC EMPIRE:

 Fighting with the Persian Empire had begun during the rule
of the previous Caliph.
 Muslim forces defeated the Persian in Namaraq in October
634 AD and crossed the Euphrates.
 The Persian supreme command then sent a huge force
under Bahman.
 The two armies fought a fierce battle, the Battle of Bridge.
 Here the Muslims suffered heavy losses including their
commander Abu Ubaid bin Zaid.
 The Muslims regrouped under Mutanna, in November 634
AD defeated the Persian army led by Mehran in the Battle of
Buwaib.
 Commanding an army of 20,000 troops, Saad bin Abi Waqas
met the Persian 120,000 army led by Rustam at Qadisiya.
 The Battle of Qadisiya thus began in 635 AD.
 A fierce battle was fought resulting in Rustam’s death.
 Now Saad and his army advanced to the Persian capital Al-
Madain.
 He laid a siege for several days and the king Yazdigard
escaped to north while the Muslims captured Al-Madain.
 The king was finally defeated at Jalula.
 In the meantime the Persians, Romans and Christian Arab
tribes combined their forces in upper Iraq near Tekrit.
 Saad dispatched an army that defeated the joint forces.
 Saad, on Umar’s advice, founded the new cities Kufa and
Basra near Madain for the Muslim armies and their families.
 Umar completed the final capture and subjugation of Persia
in the Battle of Nihawand in 642 AD, marking the end of the
Sassanid Dynasty in Persia.
 In Syria the Muslim forces were advancing rapidly when
Umar became the Caliph. Khalid bin Waleed added Damacus,
Jordan and Emmessa, one after another to the Muslim Empire.
After the loss of these important cities the Roman Emperor sent
an army of 260,000 men against the Muslims.
  This force too was defeated in 635 AD in the Battle of
Yarmouk under the leadership of Abu Ubaidah bin Jarrah.
 Many other important Syrian towns were also captured
leaving only Jerusalam and its surrounding towns.
 Finally Jerusalem was also taken in a peaceful manner on
the request of Patriarch Sophronius
 He requested that the ‘king’ of Muslims should himself come
and receive the keys of the city.
 Umar himself met Sophronius and signed a peace treaty
under which full religious freedom was given to the citizens of
Jerusalem on the condition of paying Jizya.
 Sanctity of the Church of Resurrection and other churches
was also guaranteed.
 Finally Egypt was also conquered in 640 AD by Amr bin Al-
Aas who had to persuade Umar with great difficulty.
 Amr bin Al-Aas argued that Egypt could be used by the
Romans as the naval base to launch operations against the
Muslims.
 By April 641 AD Babylon was also captured and the new city
of Fustat was founded in 642 AD on the eastern bank of the
Nile.
 Umar appointed able and efficient governors in all these
conquered territories.

ADMINISTRATION:
 Hazrat Umar framed the constitution of the State on the
basis of democracy.
 He established a Majlis-e-Shoora consisting of prominent
companions of the Holy Prophet from both Muhajirin and
Ansaar.
 The Muslim Empire had grown tremendously in size and
therefore it was inevitable (unavoidable) to divide it further into
a greater number of provinces.
 Each province was governed by a governor or Wali who
held the executive authority.
 The Wali was assisted by a number of officers e.g. the
Treasury Officer, the Revenue Collector, the Vigilance Officer
and the Judge (Qazi).
 Each province was divided into districts which were
administered by Amils.
 All appointments were made in consultation with the Majlis-
e-Shoora.
 All the officers were summoned to Makkah on the occasion
of Hajj to be answerable to the Caliph.
 They were paid handsome salaries to make them
incorruptible.
 The Caliph himself was the central authority with the
headship of religious and non-religious departments but he
would always consult the Shoora in all important matters.
 In order to uphold Islamic morals and maintain law and
order, Umar set up a department of police (shurta).
 Umar reorganized the ‘bait-al-maal’ or public treasury, which
was soon full to the brims with the funds from various sources.
 These sources were: Zakat, Jizya, Kharaj (land tax), Ushr
(special land tax), the goods left out by the retreating armies of
the enemy and a tax paid by non-Muslim traders.
 Special care was taken to distribute the funds among the
poor and the disabled. Umar established a special department,
the Diwan or the Register of Pensions.
 It was aimed at disbursement of the public funds among the
Muslim tribes.
 It was based on certain principles, for example, the whole
Ummah had a share in the public funds.
 Secondly, each Muslim had a share according to his/her
relationship with the Prophet, priority in accepting Islam and
services to Islam.
 Huge spending were made in the construction of mosques,
schools, office buildings, canals, rest houses and expansion of
the Haram and the mosque of the Prophet.
 Umar founded some new cities like Basrah and Kufa in Iraq
and Fustat and Jizah in Egypt. Umar also introduced the Hijrah
calendar. This makes a long list of the reforms and
development projects introduced by Umar.
MAIN ACTIVITIES DURING HIS CALIPHATE:
 Umar succeeded Abu Bakr as the second Caliph in
634/13AH and continued the mission of the first Caliph till his
martyrdom in 644/23AH.
 Abu Bakr himself nominated him as his successor.
 His Caliphate is noted by internal consolidation (combine
things into one large unit) of the Muslim empire accompanied
by the expansion of Islamic rule by conquering the lands under
the Persian and Byzantine Empires which included Iraq, Persia,
Jerusalem and Egypt. His rule was surely the golden period in
Muslim history after the death of the Holy Prophet.
 The conquest of Persia had been started during Abu Bakr’s
Caliphate by the Muslim forces and finally Persia was totally
defeated in 643 AD.
 As for conquests in Syria, the Muslim forces were advancing
rapidly in Syria when Umar became Caliph.
 Khalid bin Waleed laid siege to Damascus till September
635AD and finally entered the city as victor and signed a peace
treaty.
 After this Abu Ubaidah replaced Khalid as the chief
commander of the Muslim army and recaptured Damascus
decisively in September 636.
 Other important towns in Syria on the coast of the
Mediterranean Sea were also captured. Only Jerusalem,
Ramallah and Caesarea continued to resist.
 Finally Jerusalem was also taken in a peaceful manner on
the request of Patriarch Sophronius.
 Umar himself met Sophronius and signed a peace treaty
under which full religious freedom was given to the citizens of
Jerusalem on the condition of paying Jizya.
 Sanctity of the Church of Resurrection and other churches
was also guaranteed.
 Towards the end of 639AD, Amr bin Aas, with the
permission of the Khalifa set from Jerusalem for Egypt.
 Egypt was conquered by his strategic planning.
 By April 641AD Babylon was also captured.
 Umar appointed able and efficient governors in all these
conquered territories under his wonderful administrative system.
 Hazrat Umar framed the constitution of the State on the
basis of democracy.
 He established a Majlis-e-Shoora consisting of prominent
companions of the Holy Prophet from both Muhajirin and
Ansaar.
 The Muslim Empire had grown tremendously in size and
therefore it was inevitable (unavoidable) to divide it further into
a greater number of provinces.
 Each province was governed by a governor or Wali who
held the executive authority.
 The Wali was assisted by a number of officers e.g. the
Treasury Officer, the Revenue Collector, the Vigilance Officer
and the Judge (Qazi).
 Each province was divided into districts which were
administered by Amils.
 All appointments were made in consultation with the Majlis-
e-Shoora.
 All the officers were summoned to Makkah on the occasion
of Hajj to be answerable to the Caliph.
 They were paid handsome salaries to make them
incorruptible.
 The Caliph himself was the central authority with the
headship of religious and non-religious departments but he
would always consult the Shoora in all important matters.
 In order to uphold Islamic morals and maintain law and
order, Umar set up a department of police (shurta).
 Umar reorganized the ‘bait-al-maal’ or public treasury, which
was soon full to the brims with the funds from various sources.
 These sources were: Zakat, Jizya, Kharaj (land tax), Ushr
(special land tax), the goods left out by the retreating armies of
the enemy and a tax paid by non-Muslim traders.
 Special care was taken to distribute funds among the poor
and the disabled. Umar established a special department, the
Diwan or the Register of Pensions.
 It was aimed at disbursement of the public funds among the
Muslim tribes.
 It was based on certain principles, for example, the whole
Ummah had a share in the public funds.
 Secondly, each Muslim had a share according to his/her
relationship with the Prophet, priority in accepting Islam and
services to Islam.
  Huge spending were made in the construction of mosques,
schools, office buildings, canals, rest houses and expansion of
the Haram and the mosque of the Prophet.
 Umar founded some new cities like Basrah and Kufa in Iraq
and Fustat and Jizah in Egypt. Umar also introduced the Hijrah
calendar.
 This makes a long list of the reforms and development
projects introduced by Umar.

DIFFICULTIES FACED BY UMAR:

 Although Umar continued the policies of Abu Bakr, the

difference in their temperaments and circumstances dictated
the manner in which they followed these policies.
 The period of Abu Bakr needed more tolerance as well as
quick action but during the period of Umar, the situation was
calmer and controllable.
 The first difficulty faced by Umar was that the people feared
him due to his hard attitude. They were hesitant to bring their
problems to him.
 But he proved over a period of time that his harshness was
for the wrong doers only, while he was quite soft towards other
people.
 Another difficulty was the administration of the vast Islamic
Empire.
 The borders of the Islamic welfare state had extended as far
as Afghanistan, Africa and Europe.
 The communication system during those days was not as
efficient as today.
 He fought against all the hindrances in administrating a large
Empire and ensured the governance of justice and reasonable
accountability.
 The two superpowers of the time namely, the Persian and
Byzantine Empires were busy plotting conspiracies against the
Islamic state.
 It was Umar who defeated both these empires and
established the Islamic state as a superpower in Africa and
Asia.
  Lastly the Muslim army consisted of soldiers belonging to
different areas and cultures.
 The army campaign against several countries at a time could
have turned out to be a failure because of the differences
among the soldiers.
 It was the ideal administration of Umar which ensured
marvellous discipline among the forces.
 The atmosphere in the army was exemplary and it looked as
if they were the people of one tribe.

DEATH AND WHAT IT TELLS US ABOUT HIS CHARACTER:

 Umar was martyred by Firoz, a Presian slave of Mugheera in
November 644.
 Firoz was unhappy with one of Umar’s verdicts regarding the
amount of daily payment he made to his master.
 Abu Lulu (Firoz) openly threatened to kill Umar.
 Certain people recommended that Firoz should be arrested,
but Umar refused to do so.
 He thus laid down a law that a citizen could not be arrested
on grounds of suspicion or perceived danger.
 Umar neither had a personal bodyguard nor a protocol
entourage.
 He was attacked totally unguarded. One day, while he was
leading the prayer, Firoz stabbed him with a poisoned dagger.
 He also killed several other worshippers as he tried to
escape.
 When he was finally caught, he slit his own throat. Umar
survived for some days.
 During this period, he nominated a panel of six people: Ali,
Usman, Talha, Zubair, Abdur Rehman bin Auf and Saad bin
Abi Waqas to hold mutual consultation and select his
successor from among them.
 His death shows us that he had a thorough sense of fairness
and that was the reason for his refusal to give Firoz the
relaxation in the payment he had to make to his master.
 This noble attitude of his cost him his life. Umar’s fearless
attitude portrays his strong belief in Allah as the Giver and
Taker of life.
  This incident also reflects his simple lifestyle, that the head of
the largest empire in history was easily accessible and roamed
around like an ordinary citizen.
 He was buried alongside the Prophet and Abu Bakr in
Medina.
 This shows his special status in the first Muslim community,
his tough and principled stand and the taxation matter reflects
the integrity (honour, truthfulness) of his character.

SHORT ACCOUNT OF UMAR’S LIFE:

 Umar bin Khattab was a bitter enemy of Islam and the Holy
Prophet before his conversion. He treated the early converts of
low origin quite mercilessly and according to a tradition the
Holy Prophet had prayed to God for the conversion of Umar bin
Khattab or Amr bin Hisham (Abu Jahal).
 The prayer was soon granted. He started preaching Islam
boldly and openly.
 He is counted as one of the 10 blessed companions and is
also a scribe of Divine revelations.
 His daughter Hafsa was married to the Holy Prophet.
 It was Umar who gave the suggestion of summoning the
believers for Daily prayers by Adhaan(call for prayer).
 He also rendered remarkable services in all the battles
including Badr, Uhad, Trench, Khyber and Hunain.
 Holy Prophet said, ‘’the sun has not risen over a man better
than Umar.’’
 Abu Bakr himself nominated him as his successor.
 His Caliphate is noted by internal consolidation (combine
things into one large unit) of the Muslim empire accompanied
by the expansion of Islamic rule by conquering the lands under
the Persian and Byzantine Empires which included Iraq, Persia,
Jerusalem and Egypt.
 His rule was surely the golden period in Muslim history after
the death of the Holy Prophet. He appointed able and efficient
governors in all these conquered territories under his wonderful
administrative system.
 Umar was finally martyred by Firoz, a Persian slave in 644
while offering the Morning Prayer.
  He was buried alongside the Holy Prophet and Abu Bakr in
Medina.
 Umar left behind him an effective system of administration
throughout his empire by appointing extremely efficient
governors and Qadis (judges) and other state officials.
 His Caliphate brought a great deal of propriety
(respectability) and strength for the Muslims.

HIS IMPORTANCE/SIGNIFICANCE IN ISLAMIC HISTORY:

 Umar was one of the early converts of Islam.
 His conversion gave the morale of the Muslims a significant
boost.
 He devoted his life and energy to the cause of Islam and
openly supported the Holy Prophet throughout his mission in
Makkah and Medina.
 He performed valuable services in all the major battles
fought against the enemies of Islam. He placed about half of
his wealth at the disposal of the Holy Prophet on the occasion
of the Tabuk expedition.
 He played a vital role in the election of Abu Bakr.
 He also convinced Abu Bakr to allow the compilation of the
Holy Quran in a book form.
 His own Caliphate was the most successful and glorious
period of early Islamic history.
 He not only consolidated the new Muslim Empire by
establishing an effective system of governance, but also
expanded its borders by capturing Persia, Syria, Palestine,
Jerusalem and the fertile land of Egypt.
 He himself led a simple and pious life and conducted
patrolling at night to ensure the peace and comfort of his
people.
 He laid down the foundations of a lasting administrative
system by dividing the Empire into provinces and by placing
them under able administrators, governors and Qazis (judges).
HOW HIS CONVERSION HELPED THE YOUNG MUSLIM
COMMUNITY:
 Umar was a powerful Makkan both physically and socially.
 He was an open persecutor and oppressor of Muslims.
Conversion of Umar was an important event for the early
Muslim community in Makkah that lived a very hard life.
 The Prophet had prayed to God for the conversion of Umar
bin Khattab or Amr bin Hasham (Abu Jahal) and therefore, he
expressed satisfaction over the conversion of Umar.
 Umar, known for his fiery and impulsive nature, made his
conversion public in a bold manner.
 He was the most open about public praying.
 This raised the confidence of the persecuted Muslim
community.
 Muslims could not pray at the Kaabah until he became a
Muslim.
 They now began to offer prayer openly in the Kaabah without
any fear.
 Umar’s physical and social strength, after his conversion,
was dedicated to the growth of Islam and raising the morale of
the Muslims in Makkah (and later in Medina).
 The Prophet, in recognition of Umar’s conversion, gave him
the title of Al-Farooq (the one who can differentiate between
the truth and falsehood).

LIST OF QUESTIONS
4 (a) Write an account of the main activities of Hazrat `Umar
(i) During the lifetime of the Prophet, and
(ii) During his caliphate. [2 x 6]

(b) What does the manner of Hazrat Umar’s death, tell us

about his character? [4]

(a) (i) • He converted to Islam when he heard a passage of the

Qur’an being recited [here allow 1 mark for the basic point, and
allow a further 1 mark for details, e.g. that he was on his way to kill
the Prophet; that he surprised his sister and her husband hearing
the Qur’an recited; that he was going to destroy this passage, but
relented when he read it].
• In Makka he had a reputation as a fierce and strong fighter.
• His conversion gave courage to the Muslims in Makka.
• In Makka he proved a great help because he was able to protect
the Prophet from attacks.
• He made the Hijra to Madina with the other Muslims.
• There he was always close to the Prophet in battles [allow a
further 1 mark for details, such as his defending the Prophet at
Uhud, and his digging the trench before Khandaq].
• His ties with the Prophet were strengthened when the Prophet
married his daughter Hafsa.
• He objected to the terms of the Treaty of al-Hudaybiya because
they disadvantaged the Prophet.
• He took part in the expeditions to the north that were organised
towards the end of the Prophet’s life.

(ii) • He oversaw the expansion of the empire into Syria, Persia,

Iraq and Egypt [allow 1 mark for the basic point, a further 1 mark
for details, and an additional 1 mark for names of battles and
dates].
• He personally accepted the surrender of Jerusalem [1 mark for
the basic point, and a further 1 mark for details].
• The agreements he made with conquered non-Muslims formed
the basis of later legislation about Dhimmis.
• He oversaw many important administrative measures [1 mark for
the basic point, a further 1 mark for details such as the diwan
which listed those entitled to pensions from the state, the institution
of the position of judge, and a further 1 mark for full details of more
than one of his measures]

(b) • Umar was killed by his slave (Abu Lu’lu’a).

• The reason was that he refused to excuse him from paying a tax.
• This is characteristic of `Umar’s total impartiality and refusal to
allow concessions even to those close to him.
• He was stern about the correct observance of all regulations
[allow 1 mark for any examples that illustrate this characteristic].
• He was buried near the Prophet, which shows he was held in
high honour

(b) What does the way he died tell us about his character? [4]
Candidates might begin by showing signs that they have some
knowledge of how the caliph died. Some might go on to describe
how ‘Umar was assassinated by his servant. However a more
complete answer will explain why the servant killed his master, and
will show an awareness of the severe fairness of ‘Umar this
reveals. It was ‘Umar’s scrupulous sense of fairness that was the
reason for his refusal to give preferential treatment to his slave
despite his relationship with him which led to his assassination.
Another version regarding ‘Umar’s assassination is that he was
killed by a Persian slave Firoz, who was owned by Mughira b.
Shuba. Firoz wanted a reduction in the daily payment he made to
his master. ‘Umar rejected his claim and so in anger Firoz stabbed
him at dawn prayers the next day.

3: Trace the expansion of the Islamic empire under the rule of

the caliph Umar. [10]
Basic answers may show some knowledge of the main battles and
areas brought under Muslim rule during the caliphate of Umar.
Better answers will be able to expand on the points made earlier
and be able to name and date the main battles. Some of the
important dates/battles are: 636AD/15AH battle of Yarmuk,
638AD/17AH battle of al-Qadisiyya, 642AD/21AH battle of
Nihawand. Better candidates should be able to give a coherent
account of the progress of Muslim armies, the battles won and the
land captured. Fully detailed and dated answers showing a gradual
expansion of the answer will enable the candidates to get top
range marks.

In what ways did the conversion of ‘Umar help the young Muslim
community? [4]
Good answers here should show an understanding of the
significance of ‘Umar’s conversion.
Answers could talk about how his conversion boosted Muslim
morale. He was an open persecutor and oppressor of Muslims, but
upon conversion was the most open about public praying. Muslims
couldn’t pray at the Ka’ba until he became Muslim. He helped the
Muslims gain confidence in practising Islam openly; no-one dared
interfere with ‘Umar when he was praying. He was known for his
temper and his physical strength. All this gave a physical
protection to the vulnerable Muslims.

Conversion of Umar (Nov ’09 paper 1):

‘Umar: he was initially angry at the prophet and the new message
he was preaching and set out to kill him; on his way he was told
his own sister and brother-in-law had converted and so went there;
overheard recitation of part of sura Ta Ha; when he read the words
himself he went to accept Islam; he had a reputation of being the
fiercest man in Makka and so his conversion provided Muslims
some protection; he fought Qur’aysh until Muslims could pray at
the Ka’ba.

June 2011(2)

Write a detailed account of the administrative measures put in

place by ‘Umar during his caliphate. [10]
Candidates could give a basic answer by saying that the Islamic
empire expanded rapidly during his caliphate and he undertook
many administrative measures to manage the affairs of the state in
an effective manner and they could go on to list a few of the
measures he took. A few examples are: he divided the state into
several provinces and appointed qualified governors called Wali;
he separated the judiciary from the executive to make it completely
impartial. The Qadi was the head of the judiciary; he established a
department of finance under the name of Dewan etc. Candidates
could discuss some or many of ‘Umar’s administrative measures,
however the more developed answers would discuss the more
important measures in some detail.

Umar’s caliphate is regarded as the golden period of early

Islamic history.”
Discuss. [4]

Some candidates could compare ‘Umar’s caliphate with those of

other caliphs and give comparisons between them to support their
answer. If candidates agree with the statement then they need to
show why and similarly if they disagree they need to back up their
answer with reasons. Answers could write about how this period
witnessed a lasting process of internal consolidation, peace and
stability as well as prosperity as a direct result of a comprehensive
and well built infrastructure and at the same time how the borders
of the empire were hugely expanded and made secure.
HAZRAT USMAN
DURING THE PROPHET’S LIFETIME
 Usman belonged to the powerful clan of Banu Umayya of the
Quraish.
 He was modest and honest since his childhood and
abstained from corrupt practices such as gambling and drinking
even before Islam.
 He was a trader and soon became a wealthy person.
 He was known as Ghani (the generous one).
 He was literate as well. He became a Muslim on Abu Bakr’s
invitation and was one of the earliest converts.
 He is counted amongst the 10 blessed companions, was a
scribe and later became the third Caliph of Islam.
 Soon after his conversion he married Ruqqaya, the divorced
daughter of the Prophet.
 He faced persecution in Makkah and migrated to Abyssinia
along with his wife with the first batch of emigrants.
 He remained there for some years and then returned to
Makkah.
 As the persecutions increased he again migrated with his
wife, this time to Medina.
 After his wife died in 2A.H, he married the Prophet’s
widowed daughter Umm-e-Kalsum. This earned him the title of
‘Zun Nurrain’ (the possessor of two lights).
 Being a wealthy man, he generously donated his wealth to
the poor amongst both Mahajirin and Ansar.
 He purchased a piece of land according to the wish of the
Holy Prophet in order to extend the Prophet’s mosque.
 He would purchase a slave from his master and set him free
on every Friday.
 He actively participated in all the battles led by the Prophet
except Badr, due to the illness of his wife Ruqayya.
 He donated generously in the battle of Tabuk.
 He accompanied the Prophet in the journey towards
Hudaibiya.
 He was sent to Makkah to hold talks with the Quraish, but a
rumour was spread of his murder, as he had to stay longer than
expected.
  The Prophet on hearing the news took a pledge from his
companions to avenge Usman’s blood.
 This historic pledge was became known as Bait-e-Rizwan.
 Usman returned safe, but the whole episode reflects his
importance and the Prophet’s love for him.
 Usman was a prominent figure during the Prophet’s life and
during the Caliphate of the first two Caliphs until he himself
became a Caliph.
 The Prophet used to pray: ‘’O God! I am pleased with Usman.
I beseech (beg) you to be pleased with him.’’
 Modesty was his most prominent feature and the Holy
Prophet once said: ‘’Even the angels of God envy the modesty
of Usman’’.
 Usman was murdered by conspirators in 35 AH and is buried
in Jannat-ul-Baqi

ELECTION:
 Umar nominated Ali, Talha, Zubair, Usman, Abdur Rehman
bin Auf and Saad bin Abi Waqas. All were one of the 10
blessed companions.
 Umar’s choice was Abdur Rehman but he was not willing to
shoulder the responsibility.
 Talha was not in Medina so the choice was now restricted to
the remaining four.
 It was decided that as Abdur Rehman had stepped down,
therefore he should choose the next Caliph.
 He consulted each one individually; Ali chose Usman and
Usman chose Ali, Saad supported Usman while Zubair
mentioned both Usman and Ali.
 He asked the opinion of other prominent men as well and
came to the conclusion that the majority favoured Usman.
 Abdur Rehman first took the pledge of allegiance followed by
Ali and other companions and then there was a general pledge.
 He became the 3rd Caliph on the 4th of Muharram 24 AH.
MAIN ACTIVITIES DURING HIS CALIPHATE (expansion +
administration):

 During the early years, the process of expansion of the

Empire continued.
 The army moved in all directions and for the first time in
Islamic history, utilized naval power.
 During his Caliphate, for the first time a fleet of nearly 500
ships was built to fight with the Greeks on the Mediterranean
Sea.
 His earliest focus was the Persian Empire in the East.
Khurasan, Merv, Tus, Sarakhs and then Khawarzim were
captured in 650 AD.
 This bought 40,000 captives and rich booty to Medina.
 Towards the West, the Byzantines forces were defeated and
Cyprus was conquered in 649 AD.
 In North Africa, Libya, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia were
conquered by the middle of the 7th century.
 In 651 AD, the standardization of the Quran on the basis of
Mushaf-e-Hafsa was done.
 Recitation on the model of only this copy was allowed and
the rest burnt.
 Official copies dispatched to all provincial capitals.
 Two of the original manuscripts of his time exist even today.
 Continued to improve on the administrative network laid
down by the previous Caliphs. Regrouped some of the
provinces and created new provinces for the newly conquered
territories.
 Majlis-e-Shoora or council of consultation was maintained.
Held periodic conferences of the district authorities in order to
keep himself informed of the conditions of the country. Used to
hear public complaints after Friday prayers.
 He allowed Arabs to acquire agricultural lands in the
conquered territories.
 Expanded the Prophet’s mosque. Constructed new mosques,
inns, border outposts etc.
 Made arrangements for the supply of drinking water for
travellers by digging wells by the sides of roads and highways.
  A dam was built to protect Medina from floods. Raised the
salaries of the officers and the armed forces. Increased the
allowances paid to people by 25%.
 Is said to have sent religious teachers to India to spread
Islam.

DIFFICULTIES:

 During the last years of his Caliphate, he faced serious

difficulties that eventually led to his martyrdom in 35 AH.
 He was a very gentle and soft hearted person. The people
who wanted to create chaos among Muslims took advantage of
his soft nature.
 Umar was a very strict administrator and the machinery of
the government worked smoothly in his time.
 Usman used to overlook the minor faults of the appointed
Amils, provincial heads as well as the new converts.
 They took an advantage of his leniency and rebelled against
him. Abdullah bin Saba, a Yemenite Jew who outwardly
accepted Islam, embarked on a subtle campaign of creating
dissension (conflict) among the Muslims.
 He and his followers established their headquarters in Egypt
and began to circulate forged letters that complaints against the
Caliph, his governors and other state officials.
 Efforts were made to highlight the long forgotten rivalry
between Banu Hashim and Banu Umayya.
 Usman did not take timely action against him.
 Even some of the noblest actions of his were misprojected
before the public; for example, the standardization of the Quran
and the expansion of the compound of the Kaabah.
 The uprisings in Iraq, Kufa and Egypt. Finally in 35 AH troops
from all three provinces arrived at Medina to take their
complaints directly to the Caliph.
 Usman had pacified them and they were on their way home
when they got a hold of a letter supposedly from ‘Usman to the
Governor of Egypt to have the leaders of the group put to death
on their return. Seeking vengeance they returned and killed him.
CHARGES AGAINST HIM:

 One of the main allegations against him was that he had

appointed his inefficient relatives as governors. There were 12
provinces in the country and he appointed his relatives in 4:
Egypt, Syria, Kufa and Basra.
 All the governors appointed by him were people of great
calibre. Ameer Muaviya, a relative of his was appointed by
Umar as the governor of Syria and Usman let him continue his
job because he was doing it well.
 Abdullah bin Saad, his foster brother, was appointed
governor of Egypt also by Umar.
 Usman appointed Saad bin Abi Waqqas as governor of Kufa.
When he was unable to control the situation there, he was
replaced by Walid bin Uqba (Usman’s foster brother) who
proved his worth.
 Abu Musa Ashari was deposed at the demand of the people
of Basra. Was replaced by Abdullah bin Amir (Usman’s cousin)
according to the wishes of the people. He proved very
successful.
 Thus none of the governors appointed by him proved a
failure.
 It was also alleged that he was too lenient and did not keep a
check on his governors. He, unlike Umar, gave the governors a
free hand in running the provinces and did not interfere in their
day to day affairs.
 His burning of the Qur’an was seen by some as destroying
God’s Word. This was done after consultation with the other
companions and it was a great service that he rendered to
Islam.
 He gave a convincing reply to each of the charges in the
presence of the Prophet’s companions. His explanation was
accepted.
 The rebels however stuck to one point—their demand to
depose the Caliph.
 To achieve this end, finally in 35 AH troops from Egypt, Kufa
and Basra marched to Medina and encamped outside the
capital.

  Usman had pacified them and they were on their way home
when they got a hold of a letter supposedly from ‘Usman to the
Governor of Egypt to have the leaders of the group put to death
on their return. Seeking vengeance they returned and killed him.

MAJOR EVENTS:

 Expansion, mention the areas conquered.

 Naval fleet.
 Compilation.
 Because of compilation and appointing relatives as
governors led to several uprisings.
 The uprisings in Iraq, Kufa and Egypt. Finally in 35 AH troops
from all three provinces arrived at Medina to take their
complaints directly to the Caliph.
 Usman had pacified them and they were on their way home
when they got a hold of a letter supposedly from ‘Usman to the
Governor of Egypt to have the leaders of the group put to death
on their return. Seeking vengeance they returned and killed him.

MARTYRDOM:

 The rebels were on their way home when they got hold of a
letter supposedly from Usman to the governor of Egypt to have
the leaders of the group put to death on their return.
 They returned to Medina after four days shouting for revenge.
 They laid siege to his house by hundreds and did not allow
food and water to reach him.
 Ali deputed his sons, Hassan and Hussain, and Zubair
deputed his son Abdullah to protect him.
 Some companions who were successful in reaching him,
wanted to help him and fight the rebels or send for the army.
 But Usman refused saying that he did not want to shed
Muslim blood.
 The siege lasted for 50 days and finally some rebels jumped
into his house, injured his wife Naila and killed him while he
was reciting the Quran.
  The copy of that particular Quran still exists with his blood on
it. He died on Friday, 18th of Zil Hajj 35 AH.

SIGNIFICANCE OF HIS MARTYRDOM:

 It was a great tragedy with far reaching consequences. It

marked the start of sectarianism among the Muslims.
 The future events proved it.
 His murder reflected the growing strength of anti Islamic
forces that had long been busy in hatching conspiracies against
the Muslim community secretly. The same conspirators would
create difficulties for the 4th Caliph, Ali.
 The event also reflected the gentle disposition and simple
mindedness of Usman who didn’t take any action against the
rebels on the ground that he did not want to shed Muslim blood.

SIGNIFICANCE:

ROLE MODEL FOR TODAY:

JUNE 2006
4 (a) Write an account of the main activities of Hazrat `Uthman
(i) During the lifetime of the Prophet, [6]
(ii) During his caliphate. [6]
(b) Explain why Hazrat `Uthman encountered difficulties in the
latter years of his caliphate and was assassinated. [4]

(a) (i) • He was one of the first converts.

• He experienced persecution for his faith.
• He married the Prophet’s daughter Ruqayya.
• With her he migrated to Abyssinia.
• He migrated to Madina.
• He did not take part in the Battle of Badr because of his sick wife.
• When Ruqayya died, he was given her sister Umm Kulthum as
wife.
• He acted as the Prophet’s ambassador to Quraysh when the
Muslims neared Makka.
• He contributed his wealth to pay for expeditions, particularly
Tabuk.

(ii) • He continued the policy of expanding Muslim territory.

• The empire expanded into Persia, Armenia and North Africa.
• He placed relatives in important positions of control.
• He requested an authentic version of the Qur’an.
• He ordered Zayd Ibn Thabit to lead the compilation of this.
• He destroyed all other copies.
• His rule caused disquiet and led to several uprisings.

(b) • His appointment of family members was seen as favouritism.

• His destruction of the Qur’an was seen by some as destroying
God’s Word.
• Some Muslims questioned his ability to rule.
• He pacified a force from Egypt by making concessions, but sent
word to have them killed on their return home.
• They returned to Madina and killed him.

JUNE 2008
4 (a) Write about:
(i) Abu Bakr’s conquest of the false prophets
(ii) `Uthman’s arrangements to make a collection of the Qur’an.
[2x5]

(b) Explain why these two caliphs thought it was important to

take these actions. [2x3]

(a) (i)
• One of the problems facing Abu Bakr was a number of people in
Arabia who claimed to be prophets like Muhammad
• The main ones were Musaylima among the Hanifa tribes in
Yamama, Tulayha among the tribes of Asad and Ghatafan, al-
Aswad al-Ansi in the Yemen and Sajdah among the Tamim tribe [1
mark for all four names; 1 extra mark for details about each]
• He sent forces against all of them
• The fighting against Musaylima was most fierce: in the battle of
Yamama many memorizers of the Qur’an were killed
(ii)
• `Uthman discovered that in parts of the empire people were
following different versions of the Qur’an
• He ordered all copies of the Qur’an to be destroyed
• He invited Zayd Ibn Thabit and a group of Muslims to compile an
authentic copy of the text
• They took great care, consulting widely and checking the text
against memories
• They referred to the collection in the keeping of Hafsa
• `Uthman had copies made and distributed these to the major
centres

(b) [In each case allow 1 mark for a basic explanatory comment
(not description); 1 extra mark for a further comment that shows
fuller understanding; and the third mark for complete explanations]
The false prophets threatened the uniqueness of the Prophet
Muhammad
Their claims suggested that Muhammad was not the last prophet
sent from God
Unless they were overthrown Islam could not uphold its claims
If variant readings were allowed the message of the Qur’an might
be obscured
These readings threatened the purity of God’s instructions
If they were allowed to continue the community might be split over
different teachings

JUNE 2010
3 (a) what major events took place during the caliphate of
‘Uthman? [10]

‘Uthman was the third caliph. He continued the policy of expanding

the Islamic territories. He expanded the state towards the east and
in the Mediterranean and crushed many rebellions.
Details of areas conquered and rebellions put down could be given
here. The first Muslim naval fleet was built during the reign of
‘Uthman. It was ‘Uthman who during his term as caliph ordered a
full edition of the Qur’an to be made and for this appointed Zayd
Ibn Thabit to lead the compilation. He ordered all unofficial copies
of the Qur’an to be burnt. Some candidates may well discuss that it
was because of this action of his and the charge that he had
appointed inefficient relatives as governors that his rule caused
disquiet and led to several uprisings. They could go on to mention
the uprisings in Iraq, Kufa and Egypt and say how finally in 35 AH
troops from all three provinces arrived at Medina to take their
complaints directly to the caliph.

(b) Explain why ‘Uthman encountered difficulties in the later

years of his caliphate and was assassinated. [4]

His appointment of family members in important positions was

regarded as favouritism. The burning of the copies of the Qur’an to
be replaced by the official version prepared by Zayd Ibn Thabit
was seen as destroying the word of Allah. Yet another reason was
that some Muslims questioned his ability to rule. To get to the
higher level of marks the candidates must write about his
assassination as well. Here the stronger candidates could state
that after ‘Uthman had pacified the Egyptians they were on their
way home when they got a hold of a letter supposedly from
‘Uthman to the Governor of Egypt to have the leaders of the group
put to death on their return. Seeking vengeance they returned and
killed him. Evaluation of some of the points discussed above is
needed to get to the top levels.

HAZRAT ALI
SIGNIFICANCE DURING THE PROPHET’S LIFETIME:

 Ali was the first cousin of the Holy Prophet and so belonged
to the Banu Hashim.
 His father was Abu Talib bin Abdul Muttalib, who had brought
up Mohammad in his childhood.
 Ali was about ten years old when the Prophet received the
first revelation.
 Ali got the special opportunity of living in the company of the
Prophet and so developed great love for him since his
childhood.
 Ali was brave and literate and was a very intelligent youth of
Makkah.
 He led a pious and noble life, hated idol worshipping,
drinking, gambling and bloodshed.
 He was first among the children to embrace Islam. .
 One day he saw his cousin and his wife put their foreheads
on the ground.
 Hazrat Ali looked at them amazingly.
 Never before had he seen anybody saying prayers in this
style.
 When the prayer was over, Hazrat Ali asked his cousin about
this strange act.
 He explained: "We were worshipping Allah, the One," the
Holy Prophet said, "I advise you to do the same and never
bend your head before Lat, Uzza or any other idol." Next
morning Hazrat Ali accepted Islam.
 When the Holy Prophet asked the Hashimites to help him in
his mission,
 Hazrat Ali was the only person to respond to his call. After
that Ali started supporting the Holy Prophet bravely and the
Prophet declared him as ‘’my brother and my lieutenant’’.
 The Prophet gave his youngest daughter Fatima in marriage
to Ali and Hassan and Hussain were born from this marriage.
 Ali demonstrated utmost courage and boldness by sleeping
in the bed of The Prophet on the night before migration to
Medina.
 At that time he had entrusted to Ali the task of returning the
belongings of the people that had been placed in the Prophet’s
custody for safe keeping.
 In Medina, when the Prophet declared the emigrants and
helpers as brothers, the Holy Prophet declared that Ali would
be his brother.
 Hazrat Ali was a brave warrior and showed great courage in
all battles.
 At the time of the Battle of Badr, he was chosen to carry the
Muslim banner.
 During the Battle of Uhad, he was one of the few Muslims
who defended the Holy Prophet. After the battle he, along with
his wife Fatima washed the Prophet’s wounds.
 During the Battle of Trench, when some of the pagans were
able to cross over the ditch, Ali killed them.
 He was one of the leaders in the siege of the Jewish tribe of
Banu Quraizah.
 He showed great bravery in the battle of Khyber, using a
door as a shield.
 At Hunain he defended the Holy Prophet and at the time of
the conquest of Makkah, he again carried the Muslim banner.
  For his bravery, the Prophet gave him the title of Asad
Allah/Lion of Allah.
 Hazrat Ali did not take part in the Tabuk Expedition as he
remained in Medina as the Prophet’s deputy.
 On his complaint that he was not going with the army, the
Prophet said to him: ‘’you are to me as Haroon was to Musa,
except that there will be no prophet after me.’’ (Agreed Upon)
 He was among those who had taken the oath of Rizwan for
the sake of Usman’s life and then he drafted the treaty of
Hudaibiya and was one of the witnesses as well.
 He was one of the 10 blessed companions.
 He was one of the scribes of the Divine Revelation.
 He also wrote the letters sent out by the Prophet to different
kings and emperors.
 He was present at the time of the death of the Holy Prophet.
 He washed his dead body and was one of those who
lowered the Prophet into the grave.

ELECTION:

 There was no Caliph of Islam for three days after Hazrat

Usman's murder. Medina was completely in the grip of the
rioters.
 Most of the Companions had left Medina during the dark
days of the holocaust (a war in which very many ordinary
people are killed). The few who remained felt absolutely
helpless.
 After three days, when the rebels decided to return to their
homes, they felt it was necessary that the new Caliph should
be chosen before they left Medina.
 In this connection there were differences among the rebels.
 One group favoured the election of Ali (Egypt); another
favoured the election of Talha (Kufa) while the third wanted
Zubair (Basra).
 The Egyptians and some prominent companions requested
Hazrat Ali to accept the office of the Caliph but he refused.
 The rebels then offered the Khilafat to Talha and Zubair but
they too refused.
  They next requested the Ansar to choose a Caliph from
amongst themselves, but they declined and said in that in the
presence of Ali, no one else deserved to be the Caliph.
 There was a complete deadlock in the matter of election.
 They then gave the ultimatum that unless the Caliph was
chosen within the next 24 hours, they would be forced to take
some drastic action (mass murder).
 Hazrat Ali had talks with those of the Companions who were
still in Medina. They favoured him to forward and serve the
people.
 ·So Hazrat Ali agreed to take responsibility of guiding the
affairs of the Muslims. He consented to become the fourth
Caliph of Islam.
 All came to the Prophet's Mosque to receive the pledge of
loyalty. Malik Ushtar was the first to take the pledge. He was
followed by other people.
 Talha and Zubair, the two noted Companions, were in
Medina at the time. They were among the six electors
nominated by Umar. Hazrat Ali wanted to have their confidence.
Both of them took the pledge.
 ·Members of the Umayyad family all fled to Syria. They took
away with them the blood-stained shirt of the late Caliph and
the chopped fingers of his wife, Naila.
 Hazrat Ali knew well that difficult times lay ahead. The forces
of lawlessness had been unleashed. It would require tireless
work, great patience and much tact to restore law and order. Ali
hoped to accomplish the task with the co-operation of his
people.

CHANGE OF GOVERNORS:

 On becoming the Caliph, Hazrat Ali felt that in the interest of

the state, it was necessary that there should be a change in the
provincial governors.
 He therefore decided to remove the governors appointed by
Usman and appoint new people to take their place.
 Many of his friends advised him not to take such a step
before establishing himself as the Caliph.
  With regard to Muaviya, the governor of Syria, they
particularly asked him not to interfere because the appointment
of Muaviya was not made by Usman but by Umar.
 Also because he was popular in Syria and the people were
happy with him.
 Against the advice of his friends, Ali decided to replace
Muaviya also along with the others.
 He appointed new governors for Syria, Egypt, Kufa, Basra
and Yemen. Then he sent them to take charge of their
provinces.
 The governors appointed in the provinces of Basra, Egypt
and Yemen were able to take charge of their provinces without
any resistance.
 But the governor for Kufa had to return to Medina after
having failed to assume the charge of his office.
 Similarly the Governor for Syria was met by a Syrian army
who told him to go back as they did not acknowledge Ali as the
Caliph. Muaviya was not ready to accept Ali as Caliph. The
main crisis started here.

BATTLE OF CAMEL (JAMAL):

 Banu Ummayads who were in power in Syria raised a cry for

revenge for Usman’s blood.
 Exhibited the blood stained clothes of Usman and the
chopped fingers of his wife to instigate the people.
 Many people in Makkah and Medina also joined them and
demanded punishment for the assassins.
 Ali agreed but argued that he would do so only after re-
establishing peace in the country. He realized that the
assassination of Usman was not the work of a few individuals
who could be easily punished.
 Due to the chaotic conditions during the last days of Uthman
it was very difficult to establish the identity of the murderers,
and Ali refused to punish anyone whose guilt was not lawfully
proved.
 When Talha and Zubair, who were the first to acknowledge
Ali as a Caliph, saw that he was taking no positive steps to
avenge Usman’s death, they became furious.
  They approached Hazrat Ayesha, who was herself deeply
grieved at Usman’s murder, and prevailed (influenced) upon
her to join them in demanding revenge for Usman’s murder.
 They raised an army of 15,000 men and persuaded Ayesha
to accompany them.
 In the meantime, Ali was preparing a 20,000 army to cope
with the situation in Syria whose governor Muaviya had refused
to take oath of allegiance. He diverted his attention towards
Basra and met Ayesha’s forces in October 656.
 Ali did not wish to fight Ayesha and sent one of the Prophet’s
companions to assure her that the delay in punishing the
murderers of Usman was due to non-availability of evidence.
 Ayesha also wanted to prevent bloodshed and agreed to
negotiate. The negotiations began between the two parties and
ended in mutual agreement.
 This was not in favour of the rebels who had gone to such
great lengths to cause fighting amongst the Muslims.
 A band of them masterminded an attack on Ayesha’s army
during the night, provoking them to retaliate against Ali’s army.
 In the fighting that followed, Talha and Zubair were killed.
Ayesha’s own camel was finally over powered and its legs were
cut, thus giving the name Battle of the Camel to this event.
 She was treated with respect and honour and was sent to
Medina escorted by her brother where she led a retired life and
never took part in politics again.
 10,000 combatants lay dead from both sides in this very first
civil war of Islam.
 As a result of the victory at Basra, Ali’s Khilafat came to be
acknowledged by the entire Muslim world except Syria.
 After this battle, Ali shifted the capital to Kufa.

WHY TALHA AND ZUBAIR OPPOSED HIM:

 Talha and Zubair opposed Ali for a number of reasons.

 They had initially taken oath at Ali’s hand and hoped Ali
would take quick action against the killers of Usman.
 Ali, however, having his own plans and strategies, acted
differently.
 He began to dismiss the governors appointed by Usman
since he considered them to be the root cause of all troubles.
  While doing so, the actions against Usman’s killers got
delayed and this delay drove a wedge between Ali and the two
close companions of the Prophet.
 They began to oppose Ali’s policies as they wanted urgent
steps against the rebels.
 Failing to see Ali introducing any reforms to control the crisis,
Talha and Zubair joined Ayesha to worsen the conflict.

BATTLE OF SIFFIN:

Causes:
 After his election, Ali deposed Muaviya from the
governorship of Syria. Muaviya refused and under his influence
no one in Syria took the oath of allegiance to the new Caliph.
 Muaviya raised a cry for revenge for the blood of Usman and
displayed his blood stained clothes and his wife’s fingers in a
mosque in Damascus.
 He claimed that his election as Caliph was illegal and was
carried out under the pressure of the rebels who had killed
Usman.
 He presented Talha and Zubair as martyrs who laid down
their lives for the blood of Usman.
 He criticized Ali for the ill treatment of Hazrat Ayesha.
 His propaganda spread to Iran and Iraq.
 Muaviya gained enough strength in a year to challenge the
Caliph.
 Ali wrote him a letter telling him that he had been elected in
the same way as the former Caliphs had been elected.
Muaviya replied that he was not ready to accept Ali as a Caliph.
 Events:
 Ali managed to collect an army of 80-90 thousand men and
Muaviya also collected a large army.
 Both armies met at Siffin. For several months the rival
soldiers remained facing each other. Except occasional
skirmishes no decisive battle took place.
 Ali sent messengers to Muaviya asking him to submit in the
interest of the unity of Islam.
  Muaviya in reply demanded that Usman’s assassins should
be punished first. All negotiations for peace broke down and
both sides got ready for war.
 The main battle began on the 8th of Safar 37 A.H. on the
fourth day the position of Muaviya’s army began to worsen.
 Muaviya, on the advice of Amr bin Aas ordered the soldiers
in the front ranks to fasten the Holy Quran on their lances as a
sign that the war should end.
 Many officers in Ali’s army refused to fight, so the war was
stopped and it was decided that the matter be referred to an
arbitration (mediation/settlement).
 Ali appointed Abu Musa Ashari and Muaviya appointed Amr
bin Aas. They were to settle the dispute in accordance with the
Quran and Sunnah and announce their decision by Ramadan.
In the meantime all hostilities were to cease.
 Ali left the battlefield of Siffin for Kufa. The battle of Siffin led
to the birth of the first sect among Muslims that came to be
known as Kharijites.

WHY MUAVIYA REFUSED TO ACCEPT ALI AS CALIPH:

 Ali had been elected in unusual circumstances, mainly on the

insistence of the rebels against Usman.
 Ali wanted to restore peace first and then deal with the
assassination of Usman, so he issued orders of the governors
appointed by Usman.
 Muaviya’s name was in the list.
 Ali ordered Muaviya to surrender his position as governor of
Syria.
 Since Muaviya would not accept `Ali as caliph he did not do
this.
 Ali refused to take steps against the killers of Muaviya’s
uncle `Usman.
 Muaviya insisted that `Ali should punish them before he
would obey him.
 Muaviya’s opposition was a combination of personal
ambition and desire for justice.

WHY SOME SUPPORTERS OF ALI LEFT HIM AFTER SIFFIN:

  Talha and Zubayr thought he should punish Usman’s
assassins as soon as possible.
 This was the just action and they thought `Ali was wrong not
to do it.
 Ali’s supporters at Siffin thought he was the leader of the
community and those who opposed him were wrong.
 So they thought he was wrong to arbitrate with sinners.

ARBITRATION:

 In Ramadan Abu Musa Ashari and Amr bin Aas met at

Dumat-ul-Jandal, a place between Kufa and Damascus, for
arbitration.
 The question put to them was ‘’are the two eligible for the
post of Caliph.’’
 Abu Musa announced that both Ali and Muaviya would
resign and the people should be given a right to choose any
one of them as Caliph.
 Amr bin Aas announced that he agreed with Abu Musa to
depose Ali but he himself had decided to retain Muaviya on his
post.
 Because Muaviya is a successful governor and his people
have no complaints against him, so the election for the Caliph
should take place while Muaviya retained his seat.
 The decision was one sided so Hazrat Ali, on principle did
not accept it. Now the only way for him was to fight against
Muaviya once again.

KHARIJITES:

 The term Kharijites literally means separatists or out goers.

These people had taken part in the revolt against Usman and
were involved in his murder.
 When Muaviya raised the cry for revenge for the blood of
Usman, they allied themselves with Hazrat Ali and fought on
his side in the Battles of Camel and Siffin.
 · When the troops of Muaviya asked for cease fire, they
responded to the call and forced Ali to suspend hostilities,
although victory for his forces were near.
  When Hazrat Ali was going to Kufa after the decision of
arbitration right after the Battle of Siffin, they insisted that
Hazrat Ali should attack the Syrians. Ali replied that he could
not break the agreement signed by him.
 Their argument was that neither Ali nor Muawiya were
worthy of rule.
 They based it on a verse of the Quran 49:9 which said that
there is no arbitrator but God.
 In fact, they went so far as to say that the true caliphate
came to an end with 'Umar and that Muslims should live without
any ruler over them except God.
 When they arrived near Kufa, 12000 men separated and
marched towards Harwara, where they formed a party and
started their activities against Hazrat Ali.
 In this way these people separated from the main body of
the Muslims.

BATTLE OF NAHRAWAN:

 While Hazrat Ali made preparations to attack Muaviya, the

Kharijites from all over the country collected at Nahrawan and
began to create problems.
 So Ali had to fight against them first. The Kharijites were
defeated badly. Out of 4000 only a few dozen managed to
escape.
 The survivors vowed to take revenge.
 This decisive victory diverted his attention from the main
struggle against Muaviya.
 It was because of this war that Hazrat Ali was assassinated
by a Kharijite two years later.

FALL OF EGYPT:

 When Hazrat Ali decided to step forward against Muaviya,

his troops disobeyed.
 Muaviya took advantage of the disobedience and ordered
Amr bin Aas to attack Egypt.
 Governor of Egypt was defeated and Egypt came under the
control of Muaviya.
  After the fall of Egypt, a rebellion broke out throughout the
Muslim Empire against the Caliph.
 Ali signed a treaty with Muaviya in which it was decided that
Syria and Egypt will be ruled by Muaviya and remaining
territories would remain under Hazrat Ali.
 The Kharijites did not want peace to prevail and they now
started preparation to kill Hazrat Ali.

MARTYRDOM:

 After the Battle of Nahrawan, the Kharijites became his bitter

enemies. The survivors of the battle wanted revenge for their
friends who were killed in the battle.
 In 40A.H some of the Kharijites assembeled in Makkah and
decided to kill Ali, Muaviya and Amr bin Aas simultaneously.
 They claimed that neither Ali nor Muawiya were worthy of
rule.
 In fact, they went so far as to say that the true caliphate
came to an end with 'Umar and that Muslims should live without
any ruler over them except God. They vowed to kill all three
rulers, and assassins were dispatched in three directions.
 The assassins who were deputed to kill Muawiya and Amr
did not succeed and were captured and executed.
 Abdul Rehman bin Muljim was selected to assassinate Ali.
 On the 18th of Ramazan when Ali was leading the morning
prayers in a mosque at Kufa, Muljim attacked him with a
poisonous sword.
 The wounds proved fatal and he died on the 21st of
Ramazan.
 His son Hassan killed Muljim the next day.
 There are different versions as to the place of his burial.
Majority of the people hold that he was buried in Najaf.
 He did not name anyone as his successor.

ADMINISTRATION:

 The whole period of his caliphate passed in civil wars

therefore he did not have a chance to pay proper attention to
administration or conquests.
  He administered the state on the lines laid down by the
previous caliphs without making any changes.
 The divisions of the provinces remained the same as during
Umars time with a few exceptions.
 The capital was changed from Medina to Kufa and some of
the officers and governors were changed.
 Was very particular in taking care of non-Muslims.
 He constructed castles for the women and children who were
widowed and orphaned in Iran during the days of revolt.
 He introduced Islamic injunctions which included whip lashes
to drinkers and cutting of hands on stealing.
 He passed laws to provide food to the prisoners.

MAIN ACTIVITIES DURING HIS CALIPHATE:

 He became caliph after the murder of `Uthman.

 He did not immediately take steps to punish `Uthman’s
killers.
 For this Talha and Zubayr, supported by `A’isha, opposed
him.
 They fought him at the battle of the Camel.
 [+1 for a full account of this opposition and its outcome.]
 Uthman’s nephew Mu`awiya also opposed him.
 They fought at the battle of Siffin.
 This was indecisive so they agreed to arbitration.
 [+1 for a full account of this opposition and its outcome.]
 Some of `Ali’s supporters disagreed with this and
abandoned him.
 He defeated them at the battle of Nahrawan.
 He was killed by one of these while at prayer.
SIGNIFICANCE:

NOVEMBER 2005(2)

In this question you should answer part (a) and either part (b)
or part (c)

(a) Write an account of the life of `Ali ibn Abi Talib, paying
particular attention to:
(i) His companionship of the Prophet; [6]
(ii) His caliphate. [6]

Either (b) Explain why `Ali was opposed by Mu`awiya during

his rule as caliph. [4]

Or (c) Explain why `Ali’s leadership of the community is

regarded as important by Shi`i Muslims. [4]
(a) (i)
• He was close to the Prophet from childhood.
• He became one of the first Muslims.
• He married the Prophet’s daughter Fatima.
• He took the Prophet’s place in his bed at the time of the hijra.
• He was taken by the Prophet as his brother when pairing Ansar
and Muhajirun.
• He was one of the foremost warriors of the Islamic community.
• He offered to fight single-handedly before a number of battles.
• [1 mark for details, e.g. his feats at the battle of Hunayn.]
• He was a scribe of the Prophet.
• He wrote the Treaty of al-Hudaybiya.
• [Shi`as believe the Prophet designated him as his successor.]
(ii)
• He became caliph after the murder of `Uthman.
• He did not immediately take steps to punish `Uthman’s killers.
• For this Talha and Zubayr, supported by `A’isha, opposed him.
• They fought him at the battle of the Camel.
• [+1 for a full account of this opposition and its outcome.]
• `Uthman’s nephew Mu`awiya also opposed him.
• They fought at the battle of Siffin.
• This was indecisive so they agreed to arbitration.
• [+1 for a full account of this opposition and its outcome.]
• Some of `Ali’s supporters disagreed with this and abandoned him.
• He defeated them at the battle of Nahrawan.
• He was killed by one of these while at prayer.